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Friday, December 18, 2009

Heavy Rust What To Do???

Heavy Rust What To Do??? I'm asked this question frequently especailly by quilters who are battling shredding threads, broken needles, etc. Following is a multi part tutorial that will hopefully reduce the frustration of shredded threads etc.

As you can see in the above photo there are heavily rusted areas that appear to be actual rusted metal. That's because it is rusted metal. The rusting process allows rust particles, iron oxide, to accumulate on the surface of the fibers/fabrics. The end result, depending on the length of time the fabric is allowed to rust, is sharp jagged metallic edges that shreds thread, dulls needles, and leaves little flecks of iron oxide everywhere.

About Me

A Mixed Media Fiber Artist, I have been dyeing with natural dyes using local and sustainable materials since 1993. I teach surface design using natural dyes, rust dyeing, compost dyeing and other surface design techniques.